Parliament expresses pain over farmer's suicide

Parliament today expressed pain and anguish over the suicide of a farmer here, sharing which Prime Minister Narendra Modi asserted that farmers should not be allowed to die and the government would address the problems which are "very old, deep-rooted and widespread".
Modi said in Lok Sabha that the problems afflicting the farmers had to be addressed collectively and the government was open to accepting any suggestion to deal with the agrarian crisis.
The House saw an impromptu debate on the issue which lasted for over two hours with members cutting across party lines to express pain and anguish over the matter. Members demanded a judicial probe to fix responsbility.

Rajya Sabha also witnessed anguish being expressed by members, with those from Opposition seeking a CBI and demanding a reply from none other than Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the House.
Making a statement after members expressed deep anguish and outrage over yesterday's incident, Modi said assessment would have to be made about "shortcomings" that occurred before his government came as well as during his 10-month tenure.
"Yesterday's incident has caused pain to the entire nation. Members here also expressed the pain. I share the pain," he said about the suicide committed by a farmer from Rajasthan at a rally organised by Aam Aadmi Party here.

Observing that nothing is more important than a farmer's life or for that matter a human life, he said, "The problem (afflicting the farmers) is old, deep-rooted and widespread and we have to seek solutions in that context."

He said there should be a "collective resolve to ensure that farmers do not die".
He said it needs to be ascertained as to what "mistakes" have been made and "what shortcomings" have been there before his government came as well as during his tenure.
"The issue of farmers suicide has been a matter of concern for the whole country for many years... We will all have to ponder over where we went wrong and what were the shortcomings. What were the shortcomings in the last 10 months. I am open to any suggestion so that a way could be found. Let a collective resolve come out of this debate to deal with the crisis," he said.